General hunting rules
Welcome and good hunting!
We sincerely wish you a wonderful time and a successful hunt while visiting us in the Kingdom of Sweden, the perhaps last outpost of real wilderness in all of Europe! Naturally, we will see to it that you receive all the help and attention you might wish and require, offer you suggestions pertaining to your hunt and comfort, give you tips on how to behave in “our neck of woods”, as well as “how to get in close” to domestic animals and birds.
To avoid problems with the authorities which may result in possible confiscation of your hunting weapons and automobile, we kindly ask you to carefully read the following excerpts from the laws regulating hunting and the possession and carrying of firearms in Sweden. After you have read this information, please date, sign and send this form back to us “a.s.s.p”.
1. Foreign hunters must in advance apply at the Swedish Police Authority for import permission in order to bring their hunting weapons into Sweden, Your hunting organiser/outfitter will assist you in filling out the required forms. However, you may also apply for import permission directly at your Port of Entry Observe that this can be done only during regular business hours! Please be advised that you also MUST DECLARE YOUR WEAPONS WHEN YOU ARE LEAVING SWEDEN! Only rifles and shotguns (NO cal. 10 gauge and 410 gauge!) are allowed for hunting in Sweden!
2. During transports to or from the hunting area, all weapons must be UNLOADED. Your weapons should also be cased and transported in the trunk of your automobile.
3. On the way from your automobile to your assigned stand or high tower, weapons are to be carried UNLOADED. During stealth hunting ( 1+1 with guide and dog) you may have shells in the magazine, but no SHELL IN THE CHAMBER. When in doubt, always ASK YOUR GUIDE!
4. After shooting at any game, you are obligated to ascertain that the animal or bird you shot at is dead, or made a “clean get-away”. BEFORE you aim or shoot at another. Searching for and tracking wounded (even “suspected wounded”) game, is MANDATORY in Sweden!
5. ALWAYS think about your line of fire and “bullet-stop”! When several hunters hunt together, so called stand hunting, you MUST observe and STRICTLY ADHERE to the “shooting gates” your guide assigned you!
6. When game-searching dogs are baying and holding game and during this process are coming to close to it, PLEASE HOLD YOUR FIRE!!!!! The same safety procedure is in force when beaters or hunting guides are engaged in driving game toward you and if you don’t exactly know where they are! Please consider also that during your hunt there may suddenly and unexpectedly appear mushroom- and berry pickers, as well as hikers, fishermen or other persons!
7. Before starting to hunt in Sweden, you must be in possession of a FEDERAL HUNTING LICENSE! This license, the hunting license from the area you are about to be hunting in, and your weapons import MUST be carried with you while hunting and must on demand be shown to anyone requesting to see those documents.
8. While hunting MOOSE, calves are to be shot before cows, WITHOUT EXCEPTION!
9. While hunting, alcoholic beverages, narcotics and other intoxicating agents MUST BE AVOIDED! Even a little”chaser” the night before hunting can negatively affect your reaction, timing and judgement and can the next morning still be detected in your blood. Should you be approached by a police Officer and asked to be submit to an alcohol test which proves to be “positive”, your weapons and automobile may be CONFISCATED! In Sweden, the alcohol level in your blood may not exeed 0,2(?) permille! Please consider that even certain medicines can make you drowsy!
10. All birds of prey (and their nests) as well as certain predatory animals are fully protected by law and may under no circumstances be aimed or shot at. You may not even “take a closer look” at them through your scope!
11. The so-called “ROYAL GAME” in Sweden is fully protected and MAY NOT be taken. Together with this letter of information, we will send you a copy of the current listing. Please ask your outfitter or guide about any last minute changes.
12. Please remember that YOU are responsible for YOUR shots and any possible resulting damage! Always handle your guns as if they were LOADED! ALWAYS carry your gun muzzle upward!
13. We will ask you to show proof of valid liability insurance which should also cover hunting in foreign countries. If you want to be SURE of complete insurance protection, you may purchase a low cost short-term coverage from us. Without valid liability insurance you may not hunt in Sweden.
14. Whenever the hunt is called off or over for the day, you must IMMEDIATELY UNLOAD your weapon completely, BEFORE leaving your assigned stand or tower. No shells in either the magazine or the chamber! Under no circumstances are you allowed to leave your assigned stand or tower, not even if you have killed or wounded game! You may do so ONLY after permission from your guide!
15. DON’T lean your weapon, loaded or unloaded, on trees, fences, rocks, automobiles, etc!
16. NEVER leave firearms behind in an automobile, not even if it is locked and the alarm is armed! If you are forced to do so anyway, please remove the bolt or other vital part and take it with you!
17. Your guide is ALWAYS in charge and has ABSOLUTE COMMAND. Please follow his/her instructions carefully, thereby avoiding unpleasant “surprises”, liability damages, sentencing, confiscation of your weapons and automobile, or worse hunting “accidents. If you do not abide by your guide’s instructions, your hunt may immediately be terminated and you may be sent home, without refund of any paid fees!
18. If at any time you are in doubt about anything, please ask your guide or outfitter for help and explanations. You are in a foreign country, perhaps for the very first time, and do not know our laws and regulations, our hunting heritage and culture, and you are not familiar with our some-times very difficult type of landscape.
19. Before hunting commences, we may ask you to sight in your weapon. Moose hunters may also be required to shoot at a “running-moose target”. This is for your own protection and benefit! Your scope could have been misaligned during your trip to Sweden. At worst, you may MISS the trophy of a lifetime!
20. Moose may be hunted from 1 hour before sunup to sundown. Exclusively BIG GAME RIFLES and SOFT POINT BULLETS may be used! Recommended shooting distance max. 100 meters. MINIMUM requirements for big game rifles in Sweden: bullets weighing at least 10 grams (154 grains), which must have an impact energy of at least 2000 Joule at 100 meters from the muzzle. Bullets weighing between 9 and 10 grams (139-154 brains), which must have an impact energy of at least 2700 Joule at 100meters from the muzzle.
21. Small game and game birds may be hunted from 1 hour before sunup to 1 hour after sundown. From sundown to 1 hour after sundown, a retrieving dog must stand at your IMMEDIATE disposal.
22. If you are hunting with shotgun, the largest permitted shot size is US 1 (4.00 mm). While hunting WATERFOWL, shot may NOT consist lead! To avoid crippling game we also recommend NOT to shoot beyond 30 meters! Shotguns cal. 10 gauge or 410 gauge are not allowed in Sweden! (12 gauge is allowed).
23. While hunting any game, motorised vehicles may under no circumstances be used, except for transports to, from/or within the hunting area! “Motorised vehicles ”includes automobiles, ATV`s, Motorcycles, Snowmobiles, etc.! No shooting from motorised vehicles and no “resting” your weapon on any part of it! Searching for game tracking or cutting off game by using any motorised vehicle is absolutely forbidden in Sweden! To “just look at game” through your scope in or about a motorised vehicle is also forbidden, regardless of if the game you want to look at is 2legal” and season or protected.
24. While hunting in Sweden, hunters must pay close attention and give special consideration to the reindeer-breeding industry, Hunters coming into the vicinity of reindeer must immediately break off hunting and must move on to other hunting grounds.
25. Skinning game and so-called ”trophy cuts” are exclusively the responsibility of the hunter. If you cannot or will not do this yourself, tour guide will hire someone to do this for an additional charge.
26. Tips for guides and helpers are not common or expected in Sweden. However, if you are satisfied with the services rendered, you may present the persons involved in your hunt with a small gift of appreciation, such as an inexpensive knife, a dog leash, a rifle sling, a hand warmer or anything that has to do with hunting. Such gestures are highly appreciated, even in Sweden!
Most of the above is common knowledge and you most likely know all about what we described and mean. BUT – nasty incidents and ”accidents” occur, even among seasoned hunters! We are convinced that “hunting accidents” DO NOT EXIST –they happen ONLY when hunters are careless, do not follow the laws and regulations and/or do not use common sense!
Last but not least; we wish you a good, memorable and successful hunt in the Kingdom of Sweden. We hope you will be pleased and that you will enjoy yourself! However, as it always goes with hunting, we cannot “guarantee” that you get your game. However, we will do the “impossible” to get you close to the desired game. If you have questions, please ASK! We are always accessible, stand ready to accommodate you, and we will try to make your wishes and dreams come true.
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